Environmental news from California and beyond

Nonprofit asks to run Will Rogers State Historic Park

August 27, 2009 | 4:49
pm

A
private, nonprofit organization today asked the California Department
of Parks and Recreation to allow it to manage and operate Will Rogers
State Historic Park.

In a letter to parks Director Ruth
Coleman, the Will Rogers Ranch Foundation said that, given the state's
shaky finances, the organization could do a better job of running the
Pacific Palisades park, where cowboy-philosopher Rogers lived until his
untimely death in a 1935 plane crash.

"We believe that a partnership between the
foundation and California State Parks would clearly make sense and
would be in the public interest, as well as in the best interests of
this historic ranch," said Jennifer Rogers-Etcheverry, a
great-granddaughter of Rogers and the foundation’s chairwoman.

The action reflects the
frustration of Rogers family members and park supporters, who say the
parks agency has done a poor job of running the park and faces graver
challenges because of the state’s eroding finances.

Most recently, state budget cuts forced
park personnel to reduce the number of days the ranch house is open to
tours and to halt work on the visitors center, which has been
undergoing a restoration. The foundation plans to operate a retail shop
in the visitors center to muster more funds to care for the property.

The four-year-old foundation's proposal
aligns with the suggestions of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and
Coleman over the years that private groups will have to step forward to
help operate the state's cash-strapped public parks. Rogers-Etcheverry
said the foundation hopes to emulate a private group's operation of the
Railroad Museum in Sacramento.

Without offering financial details, the
foundation said it has garnered support from the Will Rogers Memorial
in Oklahoma, Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation, Will
Rogers Polo Club, Pacific Palisades Historical Society and Will Rogers
Cooperative Assn., as well as the backing of many community leaders and
opinion makers "who are willing to commit to long-term financial
support."

Representatives for the parks agency could not immediately be reached for comment.

--Martha Groves

Photo: The former home of Will Rogers in Will Rogers State Historic Park, as seen in January 2008.